Compo says a fond farewell

Nick Compton has written a heartfelt letter of thanks to all Somerset members and supporters for their support in good times and bad over the past five years.

In his letter, Nick looks back at his time at the club and speaks with obvious fondness about the county, the players, the support staff and the fans. The support he received after being cruelly discarded by England on the eve of last summer’s Ashes clearly meant a great deal to him.

Nick also speaks very highly about the professionalism and strength of the Somerset side and his pride at being the reliable number three in a successful team.

Compo has always been very generous with his time during his five years at the club and it’s typical of him to take the time to write to his many supporters in this way. The InCider are very happy to publish his letter in full:

Dear Somerset members and supporters

You may have heard the news that I am to leave Somerset.

It is a decision that has not been taken lightly and I just wanted to write this note to show my appreciation for the warmth and support I have received from the club and you, the supporters during my time here.

I remember when I first arrived, I received a massive shock by just how high the standards were – the expectation and hard work ethic that was present at the club. I knew then that I had to put a lot of hard work in to raise my game, as I so desperately wanted to be a contributor to this team. Watching Marcus Trescothick at the other end in full flow built my confidence and I’m really proud to have been the reliable number three in this strong line-up.

I consider myself incredibly lucky and I am proud to have played for the club. I know we may not have the silverware to show for it but I consider these five years to be one of the most successful periods of my career and certainly one of best teams I have played in to date.

I thank Somerset for aiding that development, because of the support and the excellence of the players and staff around me, my cricketing ability and confidence grew. Becoming the latest Somerset player to represent our country was a fantastic honour, I’ll never forget the support I received when I missed out on the Ashes, a particularly difficult time but that egged me on to keep fighting for that place.

I wanted to keep this short and sweet, your ongoing support – be it online through social media or when I have been walking into town to grab a coffee made me feel at home and gave me a sense of belonging which has come to mean so much.

It’s with a heavy heart that I now look to move on. I have come to realise the importance of family and close relationships, therefore to strike a work-life balance, I need to return to those I am close to – even though this means saying a fond farewell to my adopted County.

I would like to thank Somerset in particular – Brian Rose, Andy Hurry, Guy Lavender, Andy Nash, Jason Kerr, Pete Sanderson, Darren Veness and Jon Pitts and all the office staff for all their help, support and encouragement. To my teammates – thanks for pushing me, I have learnt so much and wish you all the very best for the future. I feel proud to leave as Somerset’s all-time leading goal scorer in the morning warm up!

I hope you will understand my decision for now and continue to support the Somerset boys with the same level of warmth and passion as it really does make a massive difference.